Why are bees dying? Since 1994, when French beekeepers began to report that honeybees were not returning to their hives or were behaving in an abnormal and disorientated way, stories of declining number of bees and even of complete colony collapse have become commonplace across Europe. It is upsetting and worrying. Hardworking bees are much loved, competing only with butterflies in the insect popularity stakes and their role as pollinators has enormous commercial value.
The finger of suspicion had been pointed at certain best-selling neonicotinoid pesticides widely used in seed-dressing and soil treatment but also for spraying. The evidence is not conclusive but it is starting to look damning. It is not that they are necessarily lethal to bees but that they are sub-lethal, weakening the bees' resistance to disease and reducing their rate of reproductivity. Perhaps, they also destroy the bees' sense of direction - making it impossible for them to locate their hive after foraging.
Comment: The following articles give a much more in depth look at the issue of colony collapse disorder in bee populations around the world:
Honeybee Colony Collapse Disorder Finally Explained: Too Many Chemicals
Colony Collapse: Do Massive Bee Die-Offs Mean an End to Our Food System as We Know it?
More Evidence Rises Of Role Pesticides Play In Bee Colony Collapse
Harvard Study Links Pesticides to Colony Collapse Disorder in Bees
So called "Green Pesticides" pose reproductive threat to Honey Bees
Beekeeper outlines colony collapse disorder
Silent Hives: Colony Collapse Disorder and Pesticides
A Last (Chemical) Gasp for Bees?